By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — The Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday unanimously agreed to several changes to the blue-wrapped house at Old Mill Beach.

Neighbors have been waiting to see the house completed for years, since previous owners got permission to convert it from a beachside restaurant to a residence. They strayed from the plans and a stop-work order, and court action ensued. A court-stipulated agreement was reached between the owners, a handful of neighbors and the town.

Even after that, work started and stopped. And the house sat, an eyesore in architectural blue undergarments.

The new owners of 233 Hillspoint Road earlier this year began work again, and asked the ZBA to allow some aesthetic changes to a stipulated agreement between the town, the then-owners and about a half dozen neighbors.

“This is not an application,” Chairman Jim Ezzes said Tuesday. “This is a modification to a stipulated agreement. … Any changes to that stipulated agreement needed to come back to the ZBA.”

James Pendry, a representative of the new owners, noted that one of the requested changes, a third garage bay, has been dropped, reducing coverage. And, he said, a sidewalk, which had been on the property but will now be moved to the town right-of-way, further reducing coverage.

“We’re picking up 300 square feet of pervious surface that used to be impervious under the sidewalks,” Pendry said.

At a previous discussion of the request, ZBA members general welcomed the changes but wanted a legal document making it clear the neighbors in the lawsuit were indeed onboard (they had met with the new owners and signed a site plan).

Joel Green, a lawyer for the neighbors, was at Tuesday’s meeting, as was Nicholas Bamonte, a deputy town attorney. They agreed everything was in order, but noted the court will still have to sign off on the changes.

Among the requested changes:

• Six windows above the garage, rather than two.
• The front entry stairway enclosed with a three-story addition.
• A pedestrian door to access the outside from the garage without opening the overhead garage door.
• A glass panel in place of the stone veneer at rear south corner and extending across the entire rear elevation where the lower level is open to the outside … as well as a thin, vertical window added to alcove on first floor.
• Modification of roofline in middle of house with two windows added.

Two items requested by the owners were not approved by the ZBA on Tuesday:

• A spiral staircase added back to plan from rooftop to first floor and a straight stair added to access ground level from first floor.
• Reducing a vegetative buffer from 5 feet along west property line and 15 feet along south property line to 5 feet along both property lines.

Thane Grauel grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond for 36 years. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.